By Robert Capistrano
MANILA, Philippines (Eagle News) — Highly respected and influential market leaders in the real estate industry met at the inaugural Property Report Congress Philippines, a high-level forum that deals with the burning issues impacting the progress of the country’s property sector.
The Property Report Congress welcomed the largest developers, investors, architects, designers, real estate professional, local and global suppliers, leading luxury brands and industry influencers.
The Congress recently took place at the Fairmont Makati before the Philippines Property Awards 2016 gala dinner. At the awards gala, Megaworld Corporation took home its first-ever Best Developer award, the most coveted award of the night. The Dr. Andrew Tan led company started the evening with an unprecedented 16 nominations, Uptown Bonifacio bagging six. The high-end urban community won Best Residential Architectural Design for the Uptown Ritz condominium development.
Property Guru, Asia’s leading online property portal group used by more than 14 million real estate consumers, organized the event. The Congress proper held exhibits, plenary sessions, an industry overview and outlook, international networking session and lunch, keynote addresses, and a 30-minute intensive workshop from international real estate leaders.
Real estate opportunities outside Metro Manila
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported that real estate loans in the country hit a record high of PHP1.23 trillion in Q3 2015. This shows a growing confidence in the property sector as a whole, as well strong support given by the banking and lending industries in the Philippines. Iloilo and Cebu have become more popular BPO hubs, with Cebu being named the country’s second-largest and eighth biggest worldwide outsourcing center, stated Michael McCullough, managing director of KMC MAG, an international affiliate of Savills. Putting these secondary cities on the map as strategic investment hubs is the next step for developers who are maximizing social media to reach and influence buyers or renters.
Green building is the future
Ramon F. D. Rufino, executive vice-president of The Net Group and chairman of the Philippine Green Building Council (PhilGBC), mentioned the status of the Philippines being far behind other nations when it comes to environmental initiatives.
“But the good news is there is growing momentum,” he clarified. “The awareness and desire for sustainability is already strong, but we really need to improve on the level of commitment and action,” Rufino continued. “There are so many areas to work on but our top priority is for more and more companies and projects to secure green building certification. It’s easy to market and advertise real estate projects as “green” but only certification provides the users, the public, and the government with the assurance that a project is truly green and sustainable.”
Infrastructure is necessary
With the ASEAN Economic Community now in effect, the Philippines is seen by many analysts to be in a good position to lead in the region’s property growth because of its young population and English-language proficiency. But success can be achieved by implementing certain changes, beginning with infrastructure.
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) chief Arsenio Balicasan recently told reporters in Manila: “There is a constant need for the infrastructure system to keep up with rising demands in the fast-growing economy, especially these days as new property investments flood the market.”
Balicasan emphasized that the country’s weak infrastructure is squandering the full potential of the Philippine real estate and continues to hound the industry. He added that more transparency in the market and possible ownership policy changes could help increase investments in the country.
Low-cost housing segment helps drive the sector
There are concerns regarding affordability of residential properties, even if there are many exciting investment opportunities in the Philippines. Industry experts estimate that the country lacks some five million housing units, and that number can only grow as prices soar in the coming years.
“A Home for Every Filipino” is the advocacy of the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders’ Associations Inc. (CREBA). In its five-point agenda, the organization is also pushing for the establishment of a “Department of Housing and Urban Development” in the country as a necessary action to address the housing situation.
Manila has experienced major investments from global capitalists, according to the “Asian Real Estate” report, placing the city not far behind Bangkok. There are certain aspects, however, where Philippine cities can surpass its neighbors. Given the upward trend witnessed in the Philippines’ real estate sector in the past 12 months, industry experts are optimistic that the growth will be sustained this year, but there are major areas for growth that need to be addressed to maximize the sector’s potential.
While the future is optimistic for the Philippine real estate sector, an open discussion, like the Property Report Congress can be the building blocks and the foundation needed to effect positive change is this dynamic industry.